The winner, Bruce, had brought back a clean and white fox. Its fur was almost undamaged, and it had been killed in one shot to the nape. Asuka loudly protested.
"Why is he the winner! I brought back a bear! How can that tiny fox compare!"
Instructor Patricia raised her eyebrows.
"Didn't you hear the criteria for ranking? A white fox is a very rare animal. I didn't expect anyone to catch something like that. It's definitely worthy of first place."
Instructor Alan added,
"Finding such prey shows good luck. But luck is also a part of skill."
With that said, there was no room for further objection. Bruce, pleased with his first place, grinned. Seeing him, Asuka kicked a stone on the ground. Thud!
"This is ridiculous! Winning a prize by sheer luck, not by archery skills. It's unfair!"
But Asuka was hardly in a position to talk about luck. Truth be told, his hunting skills were mediocre at best. Left to his own devices, it's questionable whether he could have caught anything.
Well, even if he chased after it and manually placed an arrow in it, it would still count as a successful hunt.
Instead of pointing this out, Helmut chose to say something different.
"But you'll get to use a personal training ground from now on. The second prize is access to a personal training ground. That's what you wanted, right?"
"...That's true."
Asuka's face lit up with delight.
"And what about you? Did you place?"
"Fifth."
The ranking was lower than expected. But receiving any prize was better than none. His rank was pushed down by others who had caught impressive boars or stately stags.
"What was the fifth prize again?"
"Ten meal tickets."
"Practical."
Asuka seemed completely satisfied now.
"Personal training ground, huh? Nice. Maybe my skills will improve faster there?"
"Possibly."
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That evening, the catches from the hunt were used for another barbecue party, following the one the night before.
With a decent number of animals caught, a few skilled individuals from each group were selected to prepare the meat.
Following the lead of the campsite manager, the fur was skinned, and the meat was prepared. The by-products were processed to be returned on the last day.
Tonight, they would taste the meat.
Here, the difference in wealth was evident. Groups with better hunting skills enjoyed a lavish party. In contrast, those with little to no catch had to make do with roasting potatoes or sweet potatoes provided to all.
Helmut's group had an abundance of meat. More than enough.
"We've got bear, deer, rabbit, and even a bird. Four types of meat for just five of us. Who didn't manage to catch anything?"
As Asuka asked disdainfully, James scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"Well, there wasn't much time."
"The two with you managed to bring something back. You could've at least caught some fish by the water."
"I didn't think of that."
"Do something useful."
After scowling at James, Asuka started cooking the prepared meat. Fatty parts were grilled, small animals like birds and rabbits were roasted whole, and tougher parts were boiled for soup.
Though it wouldn't spoil in the cool temperature, it was food for the next few days.
During group activities, it was allowed to bring the food obtained here. There was no guarantee of such successful hunting next time. It was essential to save leftovers.
With this logic, Asuka flatly rejected an offer of barter from a neighboring group with no catches.
"If you didn't hunt, you should starve!"
Excluding the three who had left, the remaining five members of Group 9 enjoyed a hearty meal until late into the night.
They had to eat well tonight since they would depart for group activities early the next morning.
The atmosphere was quite pleasant. Despite being irritated earlier, Asuka seemed happy about securing second place and somewhat accommodated his group members' conversation.
Despite the unpleasant incident in the morning, the barbecue party was enjoyable, and they seemed to have no issues.
However, the two who had left with Basil, Mitchell and Wesley, did not return by the end of the day.
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The next morning, realizing the absent group members hadn't returned, the mood among the remaining members was somber.
Typically, eight members made up a group. The reduction in numbers made the absence more palpable.
"What happened to those guys? I get Basil, but are the others deliberately not coming back?"
"That's unlikely. Even if I don't know about the others, Wesley was looking forward to group activities."
"Maybe after being bitten by mosquitoes and spending time out here, they changed their minds?"
"They even brought alcohol. They said they'd come back after leading Basil to academy staff, but it's strange."
"I'll ask the instructors."
Andro went out and returned shortly.
"It seems there's been a problem. The instructors and Professor Dwayne were discussing it."
"What's the problem?"
"Mitchell and Wesley can't come. There was an accident. Remember the bridge over the large stream we crossed on our way here?"
"Yeah, I remember."
"The railing was a bit flimsy. As they were crossing, the horse panicked, and Mitchell and Wesley fell off the bridge and got hurt. Especially Mitchell, who hit his head on a rock and bled a bit. It seems serious, so they decided to go back to the academy."
"What about Basil?"
"Basil was following behind, luckily unharmed. He called academy staff after seeing Mitchell and Wesley's condition."
"Such bad luck for everything to happen."
Asuka interjected.
"So, they're not coming back at all?"
"That's right. It took us quite some time to ride here from the academy."
"If they went back to the academy, it would be too far to return here. It's too much to send students who've already had an accident back this way, even with academy staff guiding them. Even if they left now, they wouldn't arrive until this evening, which would almost be pointless."
"Yeah, well."
Asuka shrugged. Although it felt emptier with three fewer people, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Andro spoke up again.
"Since our group's numbers have decreased, the instructors are considering reshuffling and reassigning groups. They wanted to ask the group members for their opinions."
"Do we really need to do that? Besides, if we mix groups, we'd have to share our food with others for no reason."
Asuka seemed reluctant to share the food he had diligently prepared. While the food was cooked by him, the ingredients were contributed by different members. Dividing it among reshuffled groups would be a headache.
"Besides, other groups probably have their own arrangements already. It might not be great to mix people up unnecessarily. Plus, with fewer members, we're less likely to split up, right?"
People tend to stick with those they're close to, a common preference everywhere. The decision was quickly made. Andro said,
"Then, it's best to stick with our current setup."
As he went to convey the group's decision to the instructors, James murmured with a gloomy face.
"I hope those guys are okay."
Asuka immediately scolded him.
"Don't worry about useless things. Those guys are probably enjoying their convalescence, lying in soft beds in a warm place. You should worry about your own situation, as we'll be camping out here in the woods for the next two days without any instructors!"
"Insensitive jerk."
"What did you say? You know we'll be on our own for the next 2 nights and 3 days, right? Without any instructors around."
Asuka, threatening with his fist, seemed ready to take full advantage of the situation, acting as the king in the absence of a lion.
James looked at Helmut as if seeking help, but Helmut was preoccupied with a strange premonition and didn't notice.
'Finally, the group activities.'
His heart raced with excitement. He anticipated something thrilling, perhaps even dangerous, to happen. Helmut was looking forward to that danger.
Since leaving the Forest of Fahe, he hadn't once faced a situation where blades were drawn in his presence.
Life had been too peaceful, too easy.
This time, it felt like it wouldn't be so easy. Helmut really liked that feeling.
Helmut's eyes sparkled momentarily. The real battle was about to begin.